Precious Memories
by King Nate
Summary: At Sam's wedding, Mrs. Puckett recalls some of the fondest memories she had with her daughter. The days when it was just she and Sam against the world. Inspired by a song, but not reliant on lyrics.


Precious Memories

A/N: This was inspired by the song "You and Me Against the World" by Helen Reddy. LISTEN TO IT! GREAT SONG!

Disclaimer: I don't own iCarly, nor the song "You and Me Against the World"

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-JUST YOU AND ME AGAINST THE WORLD-

Sarah Puckett smiled with tears rolling down her eyes as she sat in the front row of the wedding. Her daughter, Sam seemed to shine as she walked down the aisle. Her eyes connected with her mom's at the start of the walk, now they were connected to the man that Sarah would be giving her daughter to for the rest of their lives, Freddie Benson.

It was an emotional moment, there was no doubt about that. Why, even Freddie's eyes seemed to glisten. Sarah wiped her eyes and watched as Sam made it halfway down the aisle. She was dressed beautifully in a white gown flowing down to the ground in the shape of a bell. In her hands she held a bouquet of various flowers, each as beautiful as Sarah's precious flower was on this day. Sam's golden hair was also decorated with flowers and a transparent veil fell over her face and seemed to hide her precious tears for the day that had finally come.

All these years and Sarah still didn't want to let her daughter go, but she knew that Sam's heart had chosen to leave the warm nest and fall into the open arms of her lover and husband. Sure, Sarah had made mistakes with Sam, but that never stopped the two from having a great relationship over the years. No matter what, Sam would never, never leave her mother behind, because her mom had always promised to not leave her behind. It was the same promise Sam would make for her children. Sarah wiped her eyes once more as she thought back on the years spent.

_You and me__against the world__  
Sometimes it seems like __you and me__against the world__  
When all the others turn their backs and walked away  
__You can count on me__ to stay_

Three year old Sam Puckett ran through the house, three small flowers were being held firmly in her hand, but tears were shooting from her eyes. Sarah turned and smiled at her daughter as she gripped her mother's legs and held up her index finger. "Mommy, mommy!"

"What is it, sweetie?" Sarah asked in a soft and gentle voice.

"It hurts!" Sarah picked Sam up and carried her over to the couch where she sat down. Sam sniffed and grabbed a hold of her mom's shirt. "I was picking some fwowers for you, Mommy…and one of them hurt me!" Sam lifted her finger up again and Sarah carefully inspected it, it seemed to be a simple bee sting. Sam cried and rubbed her eyes, she didn't want to cry about it in front of her mom, but a young child couldn't help it. Sarah gently kissed the sting and stroked Sam's hair, soothing the young child.

"It's okay, the mean old bee won't hurt you again." Sam was all that Sarah had, and Sarah was all Sam had. David Puckett had disappeared recently, no one knew what happened to him. They had their shares of sorrow, but really, the other helped keep things going. Sarah hugged her daughter close and gently took the flowers from Sam's hand. She smiled softly and smelled them. "You gathered these? They smell beautiful."

"Do you like them Mommy? I picked them for you!" Sam had wanted to make a bouquet for her mom, and that's what she was doing in the backyard. Sarah nodded her head and gently kissed Sam's forehead.

"They're perfect. I'm going to find a vase and put these in right away!" Sam beamed with happiness and forgot all about her bee sting as she followed her mom into the kitchen. Sarah opened a cabinet door and pulled out a small vase, one that would let the flowers fit perfectly inside. She turned the kitchen sink on and filled the vase with some water, then placed the flowers inside. "There, I'll place them on the windowsill so they can get some sunlight."

"I love you mommy." Sam hugged Sarah's leg and smiled as she closed her eyes, she was not intending to let go. Sarah rubbed her daughter's head and glanced out the window at the neighbor's yard, they were having a party and there was a clown blowing up balloons. Sam hadn't wanted to go, she opted to stay and take care of her mom and Sarah would take care of her.

_Remember when the circus came to town  
How you were frightened by the clown  
Wasn't it nice to be around someone that you knew  
Someone who was big and strong and looking out for_

Eight years old, Sam was visiting the circus with her mom. Her new friends, Carly and Freddie couldn't come, so Sarah opted to take her. They sat in the third row and had brought with them various snacks. Sarah looked at her daughter and laughed lightly, Sam had pink cotton candy all over her face. Sam looked at her mom with bewildered eyes.

"Why are you laughing, Mommy? The circus hasn't started!" Sarah shook her head and started to peel some of the cotton candy from Sam's face. Sam blinked and her mouth formed an oval shape. "I'm a mess?"

"You have a beard of pink cotton, sweetie." Sam took a moment to let the words sink in, then broke out in a series of small giggles. Sarah soon joined in the laughter and took a bite of cotton candy. Sam watched with amusement and formed a wide grin.

"You're eating my beard!" Sarah smirked and poked Sam in the belly, causing her to laugh out once more. "Mommy, I'm ticklish!" Sam threw up her arms and hugged her mom. Sarah wrapped her arms around her daughter and placed her chin on Sam's head. Sam looked over into the aisle and saw a clown walking by. He looked to her and grinned, but it looked extremely scary to Sam. She screamed and buried her head into her mother's shirt. "Mommy! Make it go away!"

"What?" Sarah looked over and the clown frowned, it didn't mean to scare the young girl. Sarah smiled and nodded for it to leave, then she rubbed her daughter on the back and whispered into her ear. "It's okay, the clown is gone, but it's nothing to fear. I won't let anything happen to you."

"Mommy…"

"I love you sweetie." Sam smiled and snuggled close to her mom. She closed her eyes and decided to stay in her mother's warm arms until the show started.

_You and me__against the world__  
Sometimes it seems like __you and me__against the world__  
And for all the times we've cried I always felt that  
God was on our side._

When Sam turned twelve, they found out where David Puckett had been all these years. Sam was at school when Sarah received the phone call saying that the body of David Puckett had washed up from one of the lakes a few miles away. She was crying on the couch and clutching the phone to her chest when Sam rushed in, tears brimming at her eyes.

"They found David," Sarah said in a weak voice. Sam closed her eyes and embraced her mother into her arms. Together, the two cried for about an hour before Sam stood up and looked at her mom.

"It's okay, right Mom?" Sarah looked up at Sam and raised her eyebrow. "I mean, we still have each other, right?" Sarah smiled and slowly nodded her head.

"Of course sweetie, I'm never going to leave you." Sarah hugged her daughter once more and wiped her eyes. They knew that they couldn't spend all their time crying, but it was going to be very hard not to. "It is still a good thing your father is no longer missing…but I wish, how I wish, he were still here." It was a shame, Sam never knew her father except for home movies and old faded photographs.

"I never knew Dad, so maybe…you could tell me more about him?" Sarah had always tried to talk to Sam about David if she could, and perhaps now was the best time. She smiled and walked toward the hallway closet. Sam sat on the couch and watched as her mother returned, a photo album in her hand.

"I always have time." Sarah sat next to Sam and let her daughter cuddle close to her as she opened the album. "Your father was a great man…"

_And when one of us is gone  
And one of us is left to carry on  
Then remembering will have to do  
Our memories alone will get us through  
Think about the days of me and you  
Of __you and me__against the world_

Sam walked into the house and saw Sarah holding a sheet of paper in her hand. It was a letter addressed to her from Carly. Sarah looked up and frowned at Sam. "How…How could you say these things about your own mother?" Sarah asked in a quiet and shaky voice. Sam froze on the spot and watched her mom rise from her seat. Apparently, Carly had sent Mrs. Puckett a concerned letter, stating all that Sam said about the woman. "How am I neglectful to you?!"

"Now mom…" Sam swallowed and spotted the tears starting to form in her mother's eyes. She knew Sarah was hurt, and she didn't deserve all that. In truth, Sam always felt she shouldn't outshine Carly, so since Carly's home life wasn't _perfect_, then she shouldn't try to tell Carly how perfect she felt _her_ home life was. "You don't understand…"

"I understand that you don't appreciate me at all!" Sarah tossed the paper onto the floor and started to walk off.

"Mom!"

"I won't hear it!"

"Well maybe if you stopped walking away and listened, I could tell you!" Sarah's face flushed angrily and she turned to look at her daughter with hurt eyes. Sam winced and shrank back, this wasn't the time for a fight. This wasn't even a good day for a fight.

"Explain what? Explain how much you must hate me?! How dare you tell your best friend all these lies about me!" Sarah turned away and moved toward her bedroom, slamming the door shut. Sam turned her head down and closed her fists, tears began to form in her eyes as she heard her mother crying.

"I love you Mommy…" Only thirty minutes passed when Sam knocked on Sarah's bedroom door. Sarah didn't respond, so Sam opened the door and entered with food in her hands. Sarah was wrapped under the covers in her bed and facing the wall. "Mom, I made you some cookies…I'm sorry…" There was still no response, so Sam moved in front of Sarah to try and wake her up, but she saw that her mother's face was blue and the woman was unconscious. "MOM!"

Only a few days passed and Sarah was released from the hospital room. Sam was crying all the way from the hospital to home. The doctors had to operate on Sarah because of an illness that would surely have taken her life had Sam not found her in time. At her bedside, Sam held onto her mom's hand and let her tears fall like rivers.

"Mom, I'm sorry…I never should have told Carly those things about you." Sarah turned her head to Sam and smiled softly, she had already forgiven Sam on the subject anyway. "I've just been so afraid to outshine her…and she doesn't even _have_ a mother, much less one like you."

"It's okay Sam." Sam's body shook and she buried her head onto Sarah's hand. She was so afraid of losing her mother that she didn't even talk to Carly or Freddie for the past few days. She did nothing but sit and pray that her mother would be okay. Sarah could see the pain that was in her daughter right now, so she just needed to remind Sam that she wasn't going anywhere. "You know I'm strong, and you're strong too, I don't think anything's going to happen to us for a long time. Meaning, I'm not going anywhere…" Sam smiled softly and hugged her mother, she wasn't going to tell anyone that she was neglected anymore, it just wasn't worth it. After all, she'd just been without her mother for a few days. It wasn't worth it at all.

"Mom, I broke up with Jonah."

"You did?"

"He wanted to be with Carly, not me…"

"Oh, sweetie…" Sarah sat up in her bed and let Sam climb up into the bed. She wrapped her arms around Sam and closed her eyes, whispering soft words of comfort to her daughter. Sam wiped her eyes and slowly exhaled.

"I'm okay though, Mom. I'm strong!"

"That you are."

"Plus, Freddie took care of Jonah. Though, I think they're friends now…but he had a big talk with the guy…" Sarah chuckled and rubbed Sam's back. She always liked Freddie, he was a true friend, as true as they came.

"He seems to care a lot for you, perhaps you should think about asking him out." Sarah smirked and Sam's eyes went wide, it was a ridiculous suggestion!

"Mom, I can't believe you'd suggest that! Freddie's such a…He's so weird!" Sarah laughed and poked Sam in the belly, causing her to laugh out. Sam was now experiencing a fit of giggles, which was a change from the sorrowful mood she was in just before. That's what Sarah wanted, was for Sam to be happy.

"Well that got you laughing. What do you say we sit on the couch, watch television, and have a bowl of ice cream?"

"That sounds great to me!"

_Life can be circus  
They underpay and overwork us  
Though we seldom get our due  
And when each day is through  
I bring my tired body home  
And look around for you_

At sixteen, Sam had begun dating Freddie. It was something Sarah knew was coming. On this day, Sarah had a long day of work, so she was eagerly awaiting time to spend with Sam at home. When she made it home though, she couldn't find Sam anywhere.

"Sam?" Sarah hadn't been contacted by her daughter, so she didn't know where Sam was. Fear pulsed through her veins as she ran through the house, crying out Sam's name. After searching the house and the backyard, she called up all of Sam's friends, from Carly to Valerie to Freddie and Jonah, but none of them knew exactly where Sam was. She ran her hand through her hair and felt her body beginning to shake. She had tried Sam's phone, but it was off.

Where could Sam be? That was the question, and it was driving Sarah crazy. Sure, Sam was sixteen and Sarah was quite lenient, but Sam never went somewhere without her knowing. If she wasn't at Carly's, if Freddie didn't know where she was and Valerie didn't have a clue, then something had to be wrong. Sarah knew she needed to calm down, so she did that. She waited for about thirty minutes, but it felt like an eternity to her and nothing less. Sam wasn't at school, she knew that much from when she contacted Principal Franklin.

Fear, worry, sadness, anger, and various other emotions were running rampant through her. She was sure if things kept the way they were going that she might suffer a heart attack. She picked up the phone and dialed the ice skating rink, remembering that it was one of Sam's favorite places. While talking to them, they said they couldn't find anyone matching her description. After she hung the phone up, she heard the door open. Sam was home! She was going to try and not be angry, but it was hard to do considering all the fear inside of her. When she turned to meet Sam, all of that fear just went away.

Sam was standing in front of her with tears in her eyes. Her clothing was torn and she was covered with dirt. She had a few cuts and scrapes on her body, but other than that, she was fine. Sarah gasped and moved her hand to her mouth as Sam quickly threw her arms around her and sobbed.

"I'm sorry if I scared you, Mom," Sam said through her sobs. Sarah wrapped her arms around Sam and placed her hand on the back of her head. "I was riding my bike and trying to get away from someone and he ruined the tires on my bike…"

"Oh sweetie…" Sam sniffed and continued to cry into her mother's shirt.

"I fell off my bike and was nearly hit by a car…"

"It's okay, you're safe now. My precious angel…" Sarah sat on the4 couch with Sam and continued rubbing her back. How could she possibly be mad at her daughter for not contacting her? It wasn't Sam's fault at all. Now she was safe, Sarah wasn't letting her go no matter what. The front door opened and Freddie entered, he looked extremely worried and had rushed over when Sarah told him she didn't know where Sam was.

"Mrs. Puckett, did Sam…" Freddie looked at Sam and his eyes widened. She was hurt. If someone hurt her, he would kill the bastard. "Sam, are you okay?" He walked over to her and hugged her. She then moved from her mom and began to cry with Freddie. She wasn't crying because of the pain, but for the fear that she had just been through. She knew she was safe, and that was the important thing. "Sam, you're okay now. Nothing will happen." Sarah trusted Freddie with Sam, she knew he would never do anything to hurt her and would always keep her safe. She smiled softly and stood up from her chair, she felt it would be necessary to let them have a moment alone.

"Sam, I'm just going to be in the next room, okay?" Sam lifted her head and looked over at Sarah, she smiled softly and quickly gave her a hug.

"I love you Mommy," Sam said in a soft and quiet voice. She felt it was important to say that, especially after the scare that both women just went through. Sarah smiled once more at her daughter and gave her another tight hug before walking into the other room.

_You and me__against the world__  
It feels like __you and me__against the world__  
And for all the times we've cried  
I've always felt that God was on our side  
And when one of us is gone  
And one is left alone to carry on  
Then remembering will have to do  
Memories alone will get us through  
Think about the days of me and you  
__You and me__against the world_

Sarah couldn't hear a word that the wedding minister was saying, she wasn't even paying the slightest attention to him. All she could do was focus on the fact that her beautiful baby girl was now marrying the man of her dreams. A happy moment, a sad moment, a moment that felt like the biggest rush of anyone's life.

This was the start of a brand new life, a time when Sam would have to create a whole bunch of new memories. Of all the times that she's shared with her daughter, every single one of those moments would be held close to their hearts. Neither could forget what it was like, living the life of a mother and a daughter. To Sarah and to Sam, their memories weren't over, more were sure to come. However for Sam, she would be giving her future daughter the same memories to last a lifetime.

"I now pronounce you man and wife, you may kiss the bride," spoke the minister. Sarah smiled as Sam kissed Freddie's lips. It was not long afterwards that everyone made their way to the reception area. Sam had slipped out of site and into the bathroom. Sarah followed in and smiled as she leaned against the stall.

"It's a big day for you, Sam," Sarah stated in a quiet voice.

"For all of us, Mom," Sam corrected. The toilet flushed and Sam walked out of the stall, smiling brightly and joyous tears still running down her face. She hugged Sarah and wiped her eyes. "I'm just so happy."

"I couldn't be happier." Sarah smiled at her daughter and gently tapped Sam on the chin. "I was just remembering when we were at the circus that one time and you had a…"

"A pink beard of cotton!" Sarah laughed and Sam joined in. It was just another one of those all too precious memories. Sam wiped her eye and looked down to her belly. "Mom, I can't wait…" She took a deep breath and slowly placed her hand on her stomach. "I'm going to have a little girl to have so many moments with. I hope that I can be as much of a mother as I've learned to be from you."

"I think you're going to be a great mother, Sam."

"Thanks." Sam leaned against the wall of the restroom as Sarah looked to the door. She knew it was probably a good idea to check on the reception, so she walked out of the restroom as Sam began to sing to her unborn baby. At the end of the song, she smiled and spoke only the softest whisper. "It's going to be you and me against the world…"

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I hope you enjoyed that. Now here's a link to the best video with this song, my goodness this person even looks a little like Sam in this...http://www. youtube . com / watch?v=WzRAQOBepzQ


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